The 2014 Legislative Session ended last Wednesday, but Governor Hickenlooper continues to sign legislation that passed through both houses this term. To date, the governor has signed 190 bills and vetoed two. He is expected to sign several more bills in the coming days and weeks. Summaries of bills signed on Friday, May 9, 2014 and Monday, May 12, 2014 are provided here.

SB 14-158 – Concerning the Harmonization of Statutory Recall Election Provisions with the Recall Provisions in the State Constitution to Reflect the Manner in which Contemporary Elections are Conducted, and, in Connection Therewith, Aligning Circular Regulation and Petition Requirements with Initiative and Referendum Circulator and Petition Requirements, by Sens. Pat Steadman & Matt Jones and Rep. Dickey Lee Hullinghorst. The bill eliminates certain conflicts between the state and federal constitutions regarding recall elections and makes changes to the procedure for recall elections.

SB 14-160 – Concerning Removing Limitations on a Transitional Living Program for a Person with a Brain Injury, by Sen. Linda Newell and Rep. Dianne Primavera. Currently, Medicaid waiver recipients with traumatic brain injury can receive transitional living services for 6 to 12 months. The bill removes the time limit for the services.

SB 14-161 – Concerning the Modernization of Provisions of the “Uniform Election Code of 1992” that Ensure Voter Access for Eligible Electors and, in Connection Therewith, Reducing the Deadline by which a Voter Registration Application Must be Submitted via Certain Methods, Altering Procedures Pertaining to National Change-of-Address Searches, Allowing Emergency Ballots to be Obtained for Nonmedical Reasons, Amending Provisions Relating to Military and Overseas Voters, Increasing the Penalty for Providing False Residential Information, Making the Aiding or Abetting the Provision of False Residential Information a New Felony Offense, and Making and Reducing Appropriations, by Sens. Jessie Ulibarri & Mike Johnston and Rep. Dickey Lee Hullinghorst. The bill makes several changes to the state’s Uniform Election Code of 1992.

SB 14-165 – Concerning the Percentage at Which to Rate the Student Academic Growth Standard for the Purpose of Licensed Personnel Performance Evaluations in the 2014-15 Academic Year, by Sens. Mike Johnston & Andy Kerr and Reps. Carole Murray & Cherylin Peniston. The bill allows a local school board to determine what percentage, if any, of a teacher’s performance evaluation must be based on student academic growth.

HB 14-1034 – Concerning the Creation of a Wine Packaging Permit to Allow Certain Alcohol Beverage Licensees to Package Wine Produced by Another Manufacturer, and, in Connection Therewith, Making an Appropriation, by Rep. Angela Williams and Sen. Cheri Jahn. The bill allows licensed wineries to package wine produced by other wineries.

HB 14-1101 – Concerning a Partial Business Personal Property Tax Exemption for Community Solar Gardens, by Rep. Max Tyler and Sen. Gail Schwartz. Beginning in 2015, the bill exempts electricity generated by a community solar garden from property tax.

HB 14-1130 – Concerning the Disposition of Moneys Charged to Borrowers for Costs to be Paid in Connection with Foreclosure, by Rep. Beth McCann and Sen. Jessie Ulibarri. The bill establishes procedures for handling cure statements in foreclosure and directs that overpayments of funds paid to cure a debt in foreclosure must be returned to the borrower.

HB 14-1162 – Concerning Protection of the Victim of a Sexual Assault in Cases where a Child was Conceived as a Result of the Sexual Assault, and, in Connection Therewith, Making Legislative Changes in Response to the Study by and the Report of the Recommendations from the Task Force on Children Conceived Through Rape, by Rep. Lois Landgraf and Sen. Morgan Carroll. The bill adds several protections for victims of sexual assault who conceive children as a result of the assault, including allowing termination of the aggressor’s parent-child relationship even when no conviction occurred and requires victims and children to be referred to by their initials in termination proceedings.

HB 14-1181 – Concerning the Sunset Review of the Nurse-Physician Advisory Task Force for Colorado Health Care and, in Connection Therewith, Continuing the Task Force Through September 1, 2020, by Rep. Sue Schafer and Sen. John Kefalas. The bill repeals the sunset of the Nurse Physician Advisory Task Force, which evaluates the medication prescribing authority of nurse practitioners.

HB 14-1284 – Concerning Registration with the Department of Revenue of Distinguished License Plates Issued to Members of the Colorado General Assembly, by Reps. Max Tyler & Don Coram and Sens. Nancy Todd & Larry Crowder. The bill proscribes procedures for the Department of Revenue to use when issuing legislative license plates.

HB 14-1290 – Concerning an Addition to the Definition of “Other Outlet” to Enable the Operation of a Remotely Located Telepharmacy Outlet, by Rep. KC Becker and Sen. Ellen Roberts. The bill allows telepharmacy practices for patients who communicate remotely with pharmacy outlets and specifies rules related to telepharmacy practices.

HB 14-1307 – Concerning the Recategorization of Mineral County for the Purpose of Statutory Provisions Fixing the Salaries of County Officers, by Rep. Edward Vigil and Sen. Larry Crowder. The bill reclassifies Mineral County for the purpose of establishing salaries for certain officials.

HB 14-1312 – Concerning Efforts to Reduce the Number of Foreclosures in Colorado, and, In Connection Therewith, Continuing the Foreclosure Deferment Program, by Rep. Angela Williams and Sen. Jessie Ulibarri. The bill extends the Foreclosure Deferment Program until September 1, 2015.

HB 14-1319 – Concerning the Creation of an Outcomes-Based Funding Model for Higher Education, and, in Connection Therewith, Making and Reducing Appropriations, by Reps. Mark Ferrandino & Chris Holbert and Sens. Kent Lambert & Nancy Todd. The bill creates a new mechanism for allocating state funds to institutions of higher education.

HB 14-1331 – Concerning the Regulation of Basic Local Exchange Service as it Affects Effective Competition, and, in Connection Therewith, Making an Appropriation, by Reps. Angela Williams & Carole Murray and Sens. Jeanne Nicholson & Andy Kerr. The bill modifies the statutory framework for regulation of local phone service.

HB 14-1345 – Concerning Authority for the Department of Higher Education to Transfer Moneys Allocated to the Governing Board of an Institution of Higher Education Between the Governing Board’s Spending Authority for College Opportunity Stipends as a Result of Increases or Decreases in Student Enrollment at the Institution of Higher Education, by the Joint Budget Committee. The bill allows the Department of Higher Education to make certain limited monetary transfers.

HB 14-1354 – Concerning the Ability of a County Clerk and Recorder to Seek Judicial Review of Final Action by the Secretary of State Relating to Elections, by Reps. John Buckner & Bob Gardner and Sens. Irene Aguilar & Larry Crowder. The bill allows a county clerk and recorder to seek judicial review in district court of certain Secretary of State actions related to elections.

May 12, 2014

HB 14-1008 – Concerning the Authorization of the Colorado Water Resources and Power Development Authority to Make Loans to Private Entities for Purposes of Forest Health Projects, by Rep. Millie Hamner and Sen. Gail Schwartz. The bill, recommended by the Wildlife Matters Review Committee, allows the Colorado Water Resources and Power Development Authority to make loans to private entities for forest health projects.

HB 14-1010 – Concerning Corrections to Statutory Provisions Relating to the Prescribed Burning Program Administered by the Division of Fire Prevention and Control in the Department of Public Safety, by Rep. Millie Hamner and Sen. George Rivera. The bill changes naming of “prescribed burn managers” to “certified burners” and removes certified burners from the list of people who can be in supervisory roles at prescribed burns.

SB 14-164 – Concerning Aerial Firefighting Efforts Through the Division of Fire Prevention and Control in the Department of Public Safety, and, in Connection Therewith, Implementing Recommendations Made by the Division Regarding the Colorado Firefighting Air Corps, by Sens. Morgan Carroll & Steve King and Reps. Bob Gardner & Mike McLachlan. The bill directs the Division of Fire Prevention and Control to maximize its aerial firefighting capacity.

For a list of Governor Hickenlooper’s legislative decisions, click here.

As amended, the bill requires a lender to establish a single point of contact for a borrower to communicate with the lender concerning foreclosure matters within 45 days after the borrower becomes delinquent in payments. The bill also prohibits “dual tracking,” in which a lender simultaneously negotiates with the borrower for a loan modification and pursues foreclosure through the public trustee. The CBA Real Estate Section participated in a collaborative process with the sponsors and other stakeholders to amend the bill into a consensus final form.

The bill passed out of the House on March 25. On April 10, the bill passed on 2nd Reading in the Senate.

Since this summary, the bill passed 3rd Reading in the Senate, and will head back to the House for consideration of the Senate’s amendments before going to the governor.

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